The corrosion behaviour of Cr/Co/Mo-alloyed low residual carbon steels in seawater solutions

The general corrosion behaviour of low residual steels alloyed with chromium or cobalt or molybdenum in seawater solutions was studied. The carbon content of low residual steels ranged from 0.1 to 0.4%, chromium content between 1.0 and 4.0%, cobalt content between 1.0 and 3.0%, and molybdenum content between 0.3 and 1.0%. Repeated laboratory tests demonstrated that low levels of chromium reduce the dissolution rate of low residual steels in seawater solutions. The results of this study suggest that cobalt alloying plays a neutral role, whereas molybdenum plays a major role in reducing the corrosion rates, particularly in higher carbon steels.     

Glass microparticle- versus microsphere-filled experimental dental adhesives

This study aimed to formulate antibacterial dental adhesives. Phosphate-substituted methacrylate adhesives were modified with 0–20 wt % copper-doped glass microparticles. Two shapes of microparticles were used: regular shaped (microspheres) and irregular shaped (microparticles). The morphology/composition, roughness, monomer conversion (DC%), thermogravimetric analysis, and antibacterial action against S. mutans and P. aeruginosa and ion release were investigated. The results showed that microspheres produced adhesives with a relatively smoother surface than microparticles did. The DC% of adhesives increased with increasing glass filler content. Filled adhesives showed polymer decomposition at ~315 °C and glass melting at 600–1000 °C. The weight loss percent of adhesives decreased with increasing weight percent of fillers. Glass microparticles at 0–20 wt % significantly increased the antibacterial action of adhesives against both bacteria. Glass microspheres at 0–5 wt % significantly increased the antibacterial action of adhesives against both bacteria. Only 20 wt % microparticle-filled adhesive showed an inhibition zone similar to tobramycin (positive control). Microparticle-filled adhesives (with >5 wt % filler) significantly reduced S. mutans more than their microsphere counterparts. Microsphere-filled adhesives (with ≤5 wt % filler) significantly reduced P. aeruginosa more than their microparticle counterparts. Microsphere-filled adhesives showed higher Cu release than their microparticle counterparts. Accordingly, phosphate-substituted methacrylate filled with glass could be used as an antibacterial adhesive. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136, 47832.     

Arabic sign language intelligent translator

ABSTRACT

Arabic sign language (ArSL) is method of communication between deaf communities in Arab countries; therefore, the development of systemsthat can recognize the gestures provides a means for the Deaf to easily integrate into society. In this research we implemented a computational structurefor an intelligent interpreter that automatically recognizes the isolated dynamic gestures. The proposed system recognizes and translates gesturesperformed with one or both hands. It comprises five subsystems, building dataset, video processing, feature extraction, mapping between ArSL and Arabictext, and text generation. To apply the system, 100-signs of ArSL was used, which was applied on 1500 video files. It's were divided into five classes:alphabet, numbers, "prepositions, pronouns and question words", Arabic life expressions, and "nouns and verbs". The evaluation indicated that thesystem automatically recognizes and translates isolated dynamic ArSL gestures by highly accurate manner. The results showed that the system accuracy is 95.8%.     

Quantification of annular flow in lined pipelines

This paper attempts to quantify the amount of flow within the annular space that could exist between a polymeric liner and a deteriorated host pipe. Inadequate fit of the liner within sewer line segments is likely to cause annular flow that will result in a higher flow rate within the wastewater collection system. The results of full-scale field tests performed by the authors on 12 pipelines lined with four different deformed/reformed or fold-and-form (DR/FF) and cured-in-place-pipe (CIPP) liner products indicated that gaps of different sizes existed in all of the tested pipelines. These gaps have resulted in variable annular flow in the tested pipelines. Based on the results of the full-scale tests, a mathematical relationship was established between the annular flow in a lined pipeline and the annular space. The relationship between the annular flow rate and the average annular gap size depends on the difference in head between the entry and exit points along the pipeline. In turn, the average annular gap size depends on many factors including tolerances and imperfections in the host pipe and liner, conditions of the host pipe and the quality of liner installation. A third-order polynomial equation was found to best describe the relationship between the annular flow and average gap size under high differential heads (up to 3.0 m or 10 ft); whereas, a logarithmic relationship fits best under low differential heads for wider range of annular gap sizes (up to 17.8 mm or 0.70 in.). Based on the results of the full-scale tests, this is believed to be more representative of typical liner installations.     

Smooth and conductive DNA-templated Cu₂O nanowires: growth morphology, spectroscopic and electrical characterization

DNA strands have been used as templates for the self-assembly of smooth and conductive cuprous oxide (Cu?O) nanowires of diameter 12-23 nm and whose length is determined by the template (16 μm for λ-DNA). A combination of spectroscopic, diffraction and probe microscopy techniques showed that these nanowires comprise single crystallites of Cu?O bound to the DNA molecules which fused together over time in a process analogous to Ostwald ripening, but driven by the free energy of interaction with the template as well as the surface tension. Electrical characterization of the nanowires by a non-contact method, scanned conductance microscopy and by contact mode conductive AFM showed the wires are electrically conductive. The conductivity estimated from the AFM cross section and the zero-bias conductance in conductive AFM experiments was 2.2-3.3 S cm?1. These Cu?O nanowires are amongst the thinnest reported and show evidence of strong quantum confinement in electronic spectra.     

The effect of damage and creep interaction on the behaviour of masonry columns including interface debonding and cracking

Creep can produce significant effects on the structural behaviour of composite quasi-brittle systems, such as masonry, by altering the stress distribution between and within structural elements. The failure of a masonry element can be accelerated through damage incurred by weathering or degradation from creep effects. In this study, a three-dimensional finite element model of a grouted masonry column is used to evaluate the significance of the interaction of creep and damage on the structural behaviour of the column. The effects of Poisson??s ratio in producing differential out-of-plane constraint stresses can be simulated using this model. By utilizing a cracking criterion and incorporating a cohesive zone material (CZM) model for the brickwork-grout interface, the sequence and the patterns of cracking of the masonry column, debonding of the interface and local failure are examined. It is shown that debonding of the brickwork-grout interface occurs prior to cracking of the outer shell of brickwork. Case studies are presented to demonstrate the significance of the interaction of creep and damage on local failure, cracking and debonding. It is shown that cracking and debonding can result in a stability failure of a masonry column that was originally in a stable condition. Further work on local buckling and post-buckling analysis seems crucial to explain composite masonry behaviour.     

Synthesis and nano-mechanical characterization of calcium-silicate-hydrate (C-S-H) made with 1.5 CaO/SiO2 mixture

In this study, calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) is synthesized and characterized. C-S-H slurry was made with calcium oxide (CaO) to micro-silica (SiO₂) mixture ratio of 1.5 and enough deionized water. The slurry was continuously mixed for 7 days, then the excess water was removed. Two methods of drying were implemented: one method used the standard d-dry technique and the other was equilibrated to 11% relative humidity (RH). The dried powders were characterized using thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRDA), and ²⁹Si magic angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The stoichiometric formulas of synthetic C-S-H powders dried to d-dry and 11% RH in this study were approximated as C_1.2SH_0.7 and C_1.2SH_2.4 respectively. The powders were then compacted to create specimens with porosities similar to C-S-H in hydrated cement. The specimens underwent nanoindentation to mechanically characterize C-S-H. The experiments provide insight on the nanoscale mechanical characteristics of C-S-H.     

One‐bath union dyeing of a modified wool/acrylic blend with acid and reactive dyes

Pretreated wool/acrylic fibre was obtained by a facile amidoximation process. Fibre characterisation (nitrogen content, tensile strength, shrinkage, infrared spectra and X‐ray diffraction) proved the success of the pretreatment. Union dyeing of wool/acrylic fabrics with acid and reactive dyes, namely CI Acid Red 40, CI Acid Blue 25, CI Reactive Red 194 and CI Reactive Blue 25, was obtained using a one‐bath dyeing process. Different factors that may affect the dyeability of the blend fibre, such as dyebath pH, liquor ratio, temperature, time and dye concentration, were evaluated with respect to the dye exhaustion, fixation, colour strength, levelling and fastness properties. Excellent to good fastness was obtained for all samples, irrespective of the dye used. The result of the investigation offers a new viable method for union dyeing of wool/acrylic fibres in a one‐dyebath process.     

Removal of antimony (III) by multi-walled carbon nanotubes from model solution and environmental samples

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are used for the adsorption and removal of Sb(III) from model solutions and real environmental samples. The effects of different factors that affect the adsorption process; the results showed that most of the Sb(III) ions were removed from the solution within 30 min, at pH 7.0, using 200 mg MWCNTs. Further, it was observed that the adsorption process was greatly enhanced by lowering the solution temperature, which indicated the exothermic nature of the adsorption. The adsorption study was analyzed kinetically, using different kinetic models, and the results showed that the adsorption of Sb(III) by MWCNTs from the model solution followed pseudo-second-order kinetics with good correlation coefficients. In addition, it was found that the adsorption of Sb(III) occurred in more than one step, including the liquid film diffusion of the Sb(III) ions from the aqueous phase through the liquid film around the MWCNTs and further intra-particle diffusion through the nanotubes’ bundles and aggregates.     

Investigation of Interfaces by Atom Probe Tomography

We investigated the thermodynamic and transport properties of buried interfaces with atom probe tomography. Owing to the 3D subnanometer resolution and single atom sensitivity of the method, it is possible to obtain composition profiles with high accuracy both along or normal to the interfaces. We have shown that the width of the chemical interface between the Fe and Cr system follows the Cahn–Hilliard relation with a gradient energy coefficient of 1.86 × 10^?22 J nm². Sharpening of the Ni/Cu interface as a result of kinetic control was directly observed. We investigated the grain boundary and triple junction transport in Fe/Cr and Ni/Cu. Cr segregation enthalpy into Fe triple junctions was found to be 0.076 eV, which falls in between the surface (0.159 eV) and grain boundary (0.03 eV) segregation enthalpies. In the investigated 563 K to 643 K (290 °C to 370 °C) range, Ni transport is 200 to 300 times faster in the triple junctions of Cu than in the grain boundaries. The diffusion activation enthalpy in the triple junctions is two-thirds that of the grain boundaries (0.86 and 1.24 eV, respectively). These investigations have shown that triple junctions are defects in their own right with characteristic segregation and diffusion properties: They are preferred segregation sites and can be considered as a diffusion shortcut in the grain boundary network.